Ask the Lejeune cornerback about his thought process while dropping back to defend against the pass while usually isolated one-on-one with receivers and Mallard will tell you his success is all about his poise.

“I try to be real confident and just try to do my thing and just play hard for my boys,” he said. “I really don’t worry about the bad things coming to me.”

Simply put, the 17-year-old Mallard doesn’t get fazed by the rare times he’s gotten beat on deep routes, a characteristic embodied by most that play in the secondary. You have to forget when you get beat deep and move on while remaining self-assured. Defensive backs have to have amnesia.

“I try to be confident in my effort,” Mallard reiterated. “It’s what drives me to do better.”

Mallard’s determination and his ability to shake off a blown coverage doesn’t go unnoticed.

“Last week he made a mistake when he came up to stop the run and it was a pass, but instead of putting his head down, he kept his head up,” Lejeune coach Darryl Schwartz said. “He then started kicking butt all over the place.”

Mallard has certainly done his share at this point for the Devilpups (13-1), who visit defending state champion Plymouth (13-0) on Friday night in the NCHSAA 1-A East Regional final.

Kickoff is 7:30 p.m., and the winner takes on the winner of Albemarle (11-3) and Murphy (11-3) next Saturday at 11 a.m. in the state championship game at BB&T Field in Winston-Salem.

In his second varsity season, Mallard leads Lejeune with 10 interceptions, including three in the first half of the Devilpups’ 33-8 victory over Southeast Halifax last week.

Not too bad, especially given that most teams at the 1-A level don’t throw the ball as much as their counterparts in bigger classifications.

“I’m just looking at making big plays,” Mallard said.

Mallard not only did that Friday with his three picks, but each one was important.

His first one ended the Trojans’ first possession after Southeast Halifax drove inside Lejeune territory. Mallard’s second one came near midfield that set up a touchdown for the Devilpups, while his third one also came near midfield as the Trojans were trying to a score late in the first half.

Southeast Halifax must have learned its lesson as the Trojans opted not to throw toward Mallard in the second half.

“Obviously Cameron knows what he’s doing and we rely on him to take on the other team’s No. 1 receiver and we feel very comfortable with him doing that,” Schwartz said. “He has shown time after time that he can do the job.”

Page 2 of 2 - Mallard was pleased that he, indeed, did his job Friday in preventing the Trojans from getting many long gains through the air. And while he said he’s not typically hard on himself, Mallard did say he expects better from himself. He’s not satisfied.

“I would say it was my best game, but I think I could have done better in some things,” he said. “I want to be more or a role model and a better leader for my team and just be more of a playmaker.”

At 6-foot-3, 190 pounds, Mallard has the body to cover receivers one-on-one. His height allows him to reach over the top for the ball, an advantage Schwartz said was important.

But Mallard’s success doesn’t just come through his physical attributes. He said he also tries to play smart by reading the quarterback’s eyes while also making sure he doesn’t lose sight of the receiver.

But not only is Mallard not afraid to go one-on-one with pass catchers, he’s also not afraid to deliver the big hit, whether it’s in games or in practice.

Schwartz, who called Mallard “very respectful,” said his top cornerback came into the season with a mentality that he was not going to be denied.

“We did a lot of hitting and he was No. 1. Cameron brought it and he meant business,” Schwartz said. “Last year he was just a good athlete, but this year he went up another level. From day one, his hitting ability and his seriousness propelled him to do a good job.”

All Mallard wanted to do was set the tone for what he hoped was a good season.

“I just tried to hype things up,” said Mallard, who also has 28.5 tackles. “I wanted to get the season started on a good note.”

Frankly, Mallard has a hitter’s mentality to go along with his defensive back mindset.

Perhaps the former is due to his time playing at linebacker. Mallard said he was a linebacker as a sophomore before turning into a full-time cornerback as a junior.

And for the record, Mallard also plays receiver. He has 10 receptions for 117 yards and one touchdown.

But he enjoys playing in the secondary more.

“It’s a lot of fun,” he said. “I enjoy it.”

And Mallard hopes the fun doesn’t end Friday night. He knows what needs to happen if the Devilpups are to defeat Plymouth.

“The whole team needs to be on top of its game and everybody needs to give 110 percent,” he said. “This is a big game for us. We have to win this in order to get to the state championship game.”